USA Basketball Making Stop In Chicago From July 27-29
(CBS) USA Basketball will practice and hold an exhibition game in Chicago from July 27-29 as part of its preparations for the Summer Olympics shortly thereafter in Rio de Janeiro.
That means former Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau -- who was unceremoniously fired last May and took a year-long sabbatical of sorts this season -- will return to the United Center, as he's an assistant on the team led by Mike Krzyzewski. Team USA will play an exhibition contest against Venezuela on July 29 after holding training sessions the previous two days. The game time hasn't been announced yet.
Bulls wing Jimmy Butler is one of the 31 finalists to make the 12-man roster, which is expected to be announced in late June.
"With only a short period of training available, our training and exhibition games are critical in helping us prepare for the challenges we will face in Rio in defending our gold medal," USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo said in a statement. "We're excited to give USA Basketball fans nationwide the opportunity to see their USA National Team in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Oakland, Chicago and Houston."
As part of their tour schedule, Team USA also has stops and exhibitions in Las Vegas (July 22 game against Argentina), Los Angeles (July 24 game against China), Oakland (July 26 game against China) and Houston (Aug. 1 against Nigeria).
The Americans open their Olympic slate against China on Aug. 6 in Rio.
